O'Quinn waits his turn with the Orlando Magic

NBA rookie led Norfolk State to NCAA upset over Missouri

WASHINGTON — Former Norfolk State star Kyle O'Quinn sat at his visitor's locker Monday, less than an hour before his Orlando Magic faced the Washington Wizards.

A few feet away was a large white dry erase board in which the Orlando coaching staff had written six keys to the game, including "do not settle," "win the hustle game" and "gang rebound."

While O'Quinn was not in the starting lineup and has played sparingly, those keys to the game would be a good mantra for his first season as a rookie in the NBA. A 6-foot-10 post player, O'Quinn can't settle for limited minutes, has to hustle when he does play, and rebound against some of the top post players in the league.

"It is a learning experience. Every day is a learning experience," said O'Quinn, who led Norfolk State to March Madness magic last year with a first-round upset over No. 2 seed Missouri. "Basketball is a job now. You have to take it seriously. You have to treat it like you have a (real) job. It is a big responsibility."

"We have a good group of veterans that help you through every day. I have learned a lot. They have helped me on and off the court," he said, mentioning Glen Davis, Jameer Nelson and Hedo Turkoglu.

O'Quinn, who turns 23 in March, was a second-round pick (49th overall pick) by the Magic last year.

Going into Monday's game he had been used as a reserve in 19 of 36 games and averaged just 5.5 minutes, 1.8 points and 1.5 rebounds per outing for a team that was 13-23.

He played four minutes and did not score in a 104-101 loss at the L.A. Clippers on Saturday after he had four points, as he made both shots from the field, in a loss at Denver three days earlier in which he played a season-high 11 minutes. O'Quinn had a season-high six points in a game in November against the Spurs. He scored his first two points in the NBA on Nov. 4 against Phoenix.

"You know you are not going to fill the same role as you did as a college senior," O'Quinn said of his reserve role with Orlando. "You have to refer back to your freshman year when you did not play 30 minutes. I have to be an all-around pro. You have to eat like a pro, you have to behave like a pro."

Luke Stuckey, an assistant coach for player development with Orlando, said rookies such as O'Quinn who don't play starters' minutes must be sure they stay in top physical shape for the times they are called upon.

"It is different from playing 35 games in college. A lot of it is conditioning," Stuckey said.

O'Quinn grew up in Queens, N.Y., and was not heavily recruited coming out of high school. He headed to Norfolk State, the only Division I program that offered him a scholarship, and was the conference player of the year in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in 2011-12. It was a big story when the New York product was drafted last spring.

"That was an exciting part of my life. That day is over. You have to move forward. I feel like I have learned a lot," he said.

In Norfolk State's NCAA win against Missouri, O'Quinn had 26 points and 14 rebounds. He averaged 15.9 points and 10.3 rebounds per game in 36 starts last season for the Spartans.

The Magic had played 36 games, less than half of the season, before facing Washington.

"You want to see good things happen to people who work really hard and are good people," O'Quinn's agent Alberto Ebanks told the Orlando Sentinel in August. "This man has worked so hard. He worked out for 18 different NBA teams. He's done everything that has been asked of him. He has, in my opinion, gone pro like a pro."

In an interesting twist, O'Quinn's college team played just a few miles away at Howard University in a MEAC contest Monday.

O'Quinn had noticed it on the schedule in advance and joined the Spartans for dinner in Arlington on Sunday.

"That was good. It was great seeing those guys. I just sent a text to coach (Anthony Evans) wishing them good luck," he said before Monday's NBA game.